Sunday, March 8, 2009

Oh My Godot: Alvin Ailey's 'The River used the music of Duke Ellington'

[The Definitive Duke Ellington; Sony 61444 (2000)] 

Oh My Godot
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Alvin Ailey, Jr was an African-American choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York Theater. Ailey is largely credited with popularizing modern dance and revolutionizing African-American participation in 20th century concert dance. It is theorized that Ailey's choreographic masterpiece Revelations is the most well-known and frequently seen modern dance performance.” “In 1970, Ailey was honored by being commissioned to create The River for American Ballet Theatre. The River used the music of Duke Ellington.”

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra, led by Neeme Järvi, Conductor, has recorded three of Ellington's works for symphony orchestra. Suite from “The River” is found on Chandos 9909 (2001) and on an earlier disc, Chandos 9154 (1993). Michael Fleming provides some background for Ellington's writing of Suite from “The River” in the liner notes of Chandos 9154: “His son, Mercer Ellington, recalls that 'the idea for The River had been kicking around for several years, ever since Stanley Dance had suggested an extended work depicting the natural course of a river'. The elder Ellington composed the music for The River in 1970, during the same period of time when The New Orleans Suite was taking shape. At the premier of The River in 1971, with choreography by Alvin Ailey, the piece was announced as 'Seven Dances from a Work in Progress Entitled The River'. Ten movements were finished by then, but only seven of these were ever staged, in spite of Clive Barnes' praise of the score in 'The New York Times' as the most considerable piece from Mr. Ellington since his 'Black, Brown and Beige Suite'”. [Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (1899-1974) composed classical music as well as jazz and is profiled at AfriClassical.com]
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